Logitech G430 Headphones Review

The Logitech G430 have the same look and feel as most of the Logitech gaming headsets. They have large square-ish ear cups and a wide headband. They also stand out a bit more than typical headphones thanks to the slightly flashy color accents. Unfortunately, they won't be the most outdoor-friendly headphones since they're somewhat bulky and you can't detach the mic.

The Logitech G430 are lightweight and comfortable headphones that are a bit too tight on the head. Their ear cups are spacious and large enough to fit comfortably around most listeners' ears. The headband and earcups are well padded, although the material used for the padding does not feel as nice on the skin as some of the other headphones we've tested. For a similar headset with pleather pads, take a look at the Logitech G432.

These headphones have a simple button layout that just gives you control over the volume level and the ability to turn the mic off. This control scheme is easy-to-use and responsive but lacks too much functionality to make the G430 an all-purpose headphone.

These are decently breathable headphones for an over-ear closed-back design. The porous pads of the earcups allow a bit of air flow which keeps the outer ear relatively cool. However, since they create a fairly good seal around your ears they will make you sweat a bit more than average if you use these headphones while doing strenuous physical activities. They're not made and won't be the ideal headphones for sports but at least you can wear them a little longer than some of the other gaming headsets like the HyperX Cloud Stinger and Cloud Revolver.

The Logitech G430, like most gaming headphones, do not have the most portable design. They're big and bulky with large ear cups that only lay flat and do not fold into a more compact format. They're a hassle to carry on you if you don't have a bag or a backpack and do not come with a case or pouch which is slightly disappointing.

These headphones do not come with a case or pouch.

The Logitech G430 have a decent metal frame that makes the headband somewhat durable but the rest of their build quality feels cheap. The joints especially do not feel particularly durable and although the ear cups are dense enough to handle a few accidental drops without getting damaged, the whole build is creaky and feels a little weak. Also, the cable is relatively thin, not detachable and non-replaceable. For a better-built affordable gaming headset, we suggest looking at the Corsair HS50 or the Logitech G635 for a similar but higher-end model.

The headphones are just stable enough for casual use but will not be ideal for running or working out. They're a bit tight on the head so they don't move much when gaming or walking around. However, since they're not made for sports, they're a bit cumbersome and will easily sway and potentially fall off your head if you use them while doing physical activities. The cable is also not detachable so it will yank the headphones off your head if it gets hooked on something.

• Logitech G430 Headphones
• USB headset adapter
• Manuals

The Logitech G430 has a mediocre frequency response consistency performance. These headphones are prone to consistency issues throughout the range, especially in the bass range. The maximum variance measured across our five human subjects was about 9dB at 20Hz, which is noticeable. We also noticed that certain types of glasses could break the seal on these headphones and cause a drop in bass. In the treble range, the maximum amount of deviation below 10KHz, is about 6dB, indicating that these headphones' treble delivery is rather sensitive to positioning.

The bass is very good. Their LFE (low-frequency extension) is at 22Hz, which is great and more than what most speakers are able to reach. Accordingly, low-bass is over our neutral reference by about 2dB. Mid-bass and high-bass are also overemphasized, but by more than 3dB. Overall, the bass is thumpy, punchy, and well-balanced, but bit hyped and north of neutral which fans of bass will appreciate. Also, their bass delivery varies noticeably across users, and is sensitive to the quality of fit, seal, and whether you wear glasses. The response here represents the average bass response and your experience may vary.

The mid-range of the Logitech G430 is excellent. The response is flat, even and within 0.2dB of our neutral reference. This ensures a clear mix and a well-balanced reproduction of vocals and lead instruments. The mismatch between the L/R driver is taken into consideration in the Imaging category, but it's not significant.

The treble is good. The response is rather uneven, but still relatively balanced, being underemphasized by only 2.5dB. The results in a treble that is a tad low on brightness and detail, especially on S and T sounds.

The imaging is very good. Their weighted group delay is at 0.4, which is good. The GD graph shows that the response doesn't cross our audibility threshold, except for the area around 70Hz. This means that they have a transparent treble, but their bass may lack a bit of punch in kick drums, but not enough to be significant. Additionally, the L/R drivers of our test unit were well-match, which is important for the accurate placement and localization of objects (instruments, voices, footsteps) in the stereo image.

The soundstage is sub-par. Their PRTF response has above-average accuracy, but not a lot activation (size). The PRTF distance value, which gives cues regarding the distance and angle of the source is also very low. Therefore, the soundstage will be perceived to be quite small and located inside the listener's head, as opposed to in-front. The high openness value however, makes their soundstage feel more spacious than that of highly isolating headphones.

The isolation is poor. Although their enclosure design is closed-back, their breathable pads make them perform more like an open headphone. Therefore, they do not achieve any isolation in the bass range, important for cutting out the rumble of airplane and bus engines. In the mid-range, occupied mostly by speech, they reduce outside noise by about 4dB, which is barely noticeable. In the treble range, occupied by sharp S and T sounds, they achieved 10dB of isolation, which is also poor.

The leakage performance is sub-par. The significant portion of their leakage is between 400Hz and 5KHz, which is relatively broad range. This means their leakage will sound fuller than that of in-ears and earbuds, but not as full-bodied as that of open-back headphones. Also, the overall level of their leakage is not very loud, peaking at around 60dB SPL at 1 foot away, which is just above the noise floor of most offices.

The Logitech G430 have an above-average boom microphone. In quiet environments, speech recorded or transmitted with this mic will sound noticeably thin, but with quite a bit of presence and detail. This makes speech easily understandable. In noisy situations, they perform great and are able to separate speech from unwanted noise, even in very loud environments, like a subways station or a gaming competition.

The microphone has a decent recording quality. The LFE (low-frequency extension) of 538Hz means that speech recorded/transmitted with this headset won't have any bass, and will sound quite thin. However, due to the decent frequency response and good high-frequency extension (HFE) of 9.7KHz, speech will have quite a bit of presence and detail, meaning it will be quite intelligible.

The noise handling performance of the G430's boom mic is great. In our SpNR test, they achieved a speech-to-noise ratio of 28dB, indicating they are able to separate speech from ambient noise to a very good degree, even in very loud environments.

No battery life since they're wired, passive headphones.

The Logitech G430 supports Logitech G HUB. This gives them access to a simple graphic equalizer, volume, and microphone level control. You can also switch between Dolby 7.1 or DTS surround sound. The app is a little more restricted on the G430 than the Logitech G930 Wireless because they do not have as many features, but overall it's an easy-to-use and versatile software. Keep in mind that even though we didn't encounter any software issues during testing, many users online have reported various problems trying to use it. Problems include, but are not limited to, startup issues, freezing, and connection issues with some devices. If you've experienced an issue with this product and software, please let us know in the discussions.

These headphones are wired and do not have a Bluetooth connection. If you want a gaming headset that supports Bluetooth, check out the Turtle Beach Stealth 700.

The USB wired connection of these headphones has negligible latency which is suitable for gaming and home theater.

Update 06/13/2019: We had previously listed the PS4 to fully support audio and microphone. However, we tested this via USB rather than with the 1/8" connectors with a controller. Since they don't come with an adapter, you can only plug the 1/8" audio cable of the G430 into controllers. The score and text have been updated accordingly.

The Logitech G430 have a wired connection with a USB adapter that provides volume and microphone compatibility for PCs and the PS4 if plugged directly in the console (see our recommendations for the best PS4 headsets). However, since they don't come with a 1/8" TRRS Y splitter adapter, you can only plug in the audio cable in consoles' controllers, which means you won't have mic support. The same applies for PCs that only have one 1/8" TRRS jack, but since you need a USB connection to access the app on PC, we expect users to use the USB adapter. Consider the Logitech G335 if you're looking for wired gaming headphones that have a single 1/8" TRRS jack, which should give them full audio and mic compatibility with a broader range of devices.

This gaming headset does not have a dock. If you need a headset with a dock that also has a wired connection for gaming or watching movies, then consider the Astro A50.